charitable purpose; and I have felt it my duty to pay it again."

Felix rose and approached his aunt's chair with faltering steps, as
became a suffering man. He took Lady Lydiard's hand and kissed it with
enthusiastic admiration.

"You excellent creature!" he said. "You may not think it, but you
reconcile me to human nature. How generous! how noble! I think I'll go
to bed again, Mr. Troy, if you really don't want any more of me. My head
feels giddy and my legs tremble under me. It doesn't matter; I shall
feel easier when Alfred has taken me out of my clothes again. God bless
you, my dear aunt! I never felt so proud of being related to you as I
do to-day. Good-morning Mr. Troy! Don't forget the abstract of the case;
and don't trouble yourself to see me to the door. I dare say I shan't
tumble downstairs; and, if I do, there's the porter in the hall to pick
me up again. Enviable porter! as fat as butter and as idle as a pig! _Au
revoir! au revoir!_" He kissed his hand, and drifted feebly out of
the room. Sweetsir one might say, in a state of eclipse; but still the
serviceable Sweetsir, who was never consulted in vain by the fortunate
people privileged to call him friend!

"Is he really ill, do you think?" Mr. Troy asked.

"My nephew has turned fifty," Lady Lydiard answered, "and he persists in
living as if he was a young man. Every now and then Nature says to him,
'Felix, you are old!' And Felix goes to bed, and says it's his nerves."

"I suppose he is to be trusted to keep his word about writing to Paris?"
pursued the lawyer.

"Oh, yes! He may delay doing it but he will do it. In spite of his
lackadaisical manner, he has moments of energy that would surprise you.
Talking of surprises, I have something to tell you about Moody. Within
the last day or two there has been a marked change in him--a change for
the worse."

"You astonish me, Lady Lydiard! In what way has Moody deteriorated?"

"You shall hear. Yesterday was Friday. You took him out with you, on
business, early in the morning."

Mr. Troy bowed, and said nothing. He had not thought it desirable to
mention the interview at which Old Sharon had cheated him of his guinea.

"In the course of the afternoon," pursued Lady Lydiard, "I happened to
want him, and I was informed that Moody had gone out again. Where had he
gone? Nobody knew. Had he left word when he would be back? He had left
no message of any sort. Of course, he is not in the position of an
ordina